[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 24 (Wednesday, February 7, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E150-E151]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           IN RECOGNITION OF THE SERVICE OF MR. THOMAS COREY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. BRIAN J. MAST

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, February 7, 2018

  Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, I dedicate my time today to a man, who as a 
resident of Jupiter, Florida, I am honored to represent in Congress. 
His name is Mr. Thomas Corey, a decorated Vietnam hero who proudly 
served our country as a combat infantryman.
  During the 1968 Tet Offensive, he received an enemy round in the neck 
that hit his spinal cord, leaving him paralyzed and a quadriplegic for 
life. But this did not stop him from dedicating his life and work to 
our veterans, and our country.
  Since then, he has done extraordinary work: he has served on many 
Advisory Boards with local governments, and with the VA Medical Centers 
in West Palm Beach and Miami, the VA Research Foundation of Palm 
Beaches, VSIN 8 Management Assistance Council, Friends of Veterans 
Board, Friends of Fisher House Board, as President of the Vietnam 
Veterans Peace Initiative, and as the founding president of the Vietnam 
Veterans of America's Palm Beach County Chapter.

[[Page E151]]

  Mr. Corey has even returned to Vietnam 16 times since 1994, 
representing the Vietnam Veterans of America's Veterans Initiative 
program dedicated to recovery efforts for our Vietnam Prisoners of War 
and those Missing in Action, as well as to studies on the health 
effects of Agent Orange. In that capacity, he met with top Vietnamese 
and Laos leaders, leaders and members of the Veterans Association of 
Vietnam, U.S. Ambassadors, and the Joint Task Force-Full Accounting in 
Vietnam and Laos. For these extraordinary efforts, he was nominated for 
the Nobel Peace prize. He was also the first recipient of the Vietnam 
Veterans of America's Commendation Medal, the VV A's highest award for 
service to veterans, their families, and the community.
  He is also a member of the Paralyzed Veterans of America, the 
Military Order of the Purple Heart, Disabled American Veterans, 
American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars,1st Cavalry Association and 
the National Association of Uniformed Services.
  To this day, Mr. Corey is still fighting for his fellow veterans, 
serving as Ombudsman and Program Specialist with the Director's Office 
at the West Palm Beach VA. I can't think of anyone who has given more 
for his comrades, and for his country, than Mr. Thomas Corey, and I 
could not be prouder to represent him in Congress.

                          ____________________